Tuesday, April 04, 2006

Snipers

"The periodic success of mujahideen snipers in Iraq has been stimulating the imagination of jihadist forum readers, and this has taken the form of a number of video productions. A high-quality, 15-minute example of the genre, entitled Qannas Baghdad ('The Sniper of Baghdad') was circulated by the Islamic Army in Iraq last November on, among others, the Abu al-Bokhary jihadist forum (http://www.abualbokhary.net).

"The work is of professional quality, complete with American-English language commentary. It features the name 'Juba,' which refers to the infamous 'Juba the Baghdad sniper' who is popularly credited with anything from several dozen to upward of 100 strikes against U.S. servicemen. He has achieved popular status among jihadi readers, with CDs of his work circulating in Iraq and clips even appearing on al-Jazeera satellite television. 'Juba,' however, was also rumored to have been captured last June when quick reaction to an unsuccessful sniper attack resulted in the arrest of a two-man team."

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About Me

I am an Associate Professor in History at Shippensburg University, where I teach courses in Middle Eastern and world history. My two major research areas are the Middle East from the 7th through 10th centuries and the Persian Gulf from ancient times to the present. Nothing on this site represents an official position of Shippensburg University.